Inland Empire Bluray Review

I was going to get around to reviewing Inland Empire on Blu-ray at some point but have been inspired to do so with a little more urgency by some surprisingly disparaging comments about it at, of all places, the Twin Peaks Gazette an online community dedicated to the seminal TV show and David Lynch's oeuvre moreover. The general opinion is that this is a dog's dinner of a film and that it has single-handedly killed his cinematic career... ..

Rocky Horror Picture Show Bluray Review

The Rocky Horror Picture Show has always been something of a guilty pleasure dating back to my days as a teenager appearing in am-dram musical revues inspired by it because the performing rights were always strictly reserved for professional productions until March 2000. The original stage show opened in London in the summer of 1973 at the Royal Court's Theatre Upstairs which ironically only seated 63 people as the subsequent 1975 film adaption has the record of the longest-running theatrical release in cinema history and now must have been seen by audiences of countless millions worldwide..... ..

David Lynch

I discovered the art of David Lynch entirely by accident, although I had shown a keen interest in films from a relatively young age, I usually arrived at them by way of the star appearing in them. As a budding actor I wanted to study the best and through watching the likes of James Stewart, Jack Lemmon, Peter Sellers and Robert DeNiro, I became aware of the writers and directors behind the camera. Stewart led me to Alfred Hitchcock, Lemmon to Billy Wilder, Sellers to Stanley Kubrick, DeNiro to Martin Scorsese and so on; all great artists but, by and large, part of the acceptable face of "Off Hollywood"... ..

Tamara Drewe Bluray Review

It seems that 2010 will be remembered as a boon year for movies derived from comic strips what with Kick-Ass, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and the various Marvel and DC Comic franchise exploits there was also Tamara Drewe based on the graphic novel of the same name by Posy Simmonds which in turn was inspired by Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd and set in the fictional, sleepy Dorset village of Ewedown... ..

Cleo From 5 to 7 Bluray Review

From the opening credits of Agn?s Varda's Cl?o from 5 to 7, you know this is going to be a stylish and important film of the French New Wave, a period of Cinema history dominated by Fran?ois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. In the colour credit sequence Cl?o (Corine Marchand), a young and beautiful Parisian, is having her future told and the Tarot cards confirm her worst fears as she awaits the results of a medical to detect whether she is suffering from an incurable disease. The photography switches to the crisp monochrome, hand-held style..... ..

Wild At Heart Bluray Review

When Wild At Heart was released at the cinema in 1990 I went to see it 3 times in the first week, this was the height of a strangely cool David Lynch mania that had gripped the planet since he posed the question "Who killed Laura Palmer?" in the groundbreaking, primetime TV series Twin Peaks... ..

The Conspirator Bluray Review

As soon as I heard that Robert Redford was directing a film about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln I wanted to see it, more so than the long awaited Steven Spielberg biopic which has been put back yet again; this time until after November 2012's Presidential elections ostensibly to avoid it becoming "political fodder" but more likely to maximise its Oscar potential for 2013. I recently became fascinated with the Lincoln assassination after listening to the original Off-Broadway cast recording of Stephen Sondheim's Assassins, particularly The Ballad of Booth which explores the psyche of John Wilkes Booth..... ..

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Bluray Review

A great advantage of parenthood is having the wonderful opportunity to revisit the movies you loved when you were growing up and experience them afresh through your child's eyes. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is one of those timeless family films that still captivate generation-spanning audiences and its bonnet has never looked shinier than on this high definition Blu-ray release... ..

Chaplin Bluray Review

Director Richard Attenborough is the first to admit that his epic biopic Chaplin was a difficult film to finance and consequently the producers made demands upon him which lead it to be not as "profound a picture" as he would have liked. Nethertheless its one massive saving grace is Robert Downey Jr.'s miraculous performance as Charlie Chaplin... ..

Stanley Kubrick

Stanley Kubrick started his career as a photographer for Look magazine in New York in the 1940s. His most famous photo captured the look of utter devastation on the face of a newsvendor the day of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's death. He left Look in 1950 to embark on his film career making family financed, low-budget, B-Movies such as Fear and Desire and Killer's Kiss... ..

Me and Orson Welles Bluray Review

When I heard that teenage heartthrob Zac Efron was going to star in Richard Linklater's film based on the novel by Robert Kaplow about a fledgling actor who gets his lucky break playing Lucius in Orson Welles' legendary Mercury Theatre Broadway debut production of Julius Caesar in 1937, I was a little uneasy yet undeterred due to my enduring fascination with Welles it was always going to be compulsory viewing. Having sat through at least two of the High School Musical movies my expectations were set suitably low, however much to my surprise Efron acquits himself rather..... ..

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World Bluray Review

I came to see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World on Blu-ray without prior knowledge of Bryan Lee O'Malley's 6 volume digest size graphic novel and whilst it appears that the 2nd volume in the series shares the film's title writer/director Edgar Wright worked with O'Malley to incorporate the key elements contained in all 6 volumes into the screenplay. I am not an avid reader of graphic novels, in fact the only time I have been compelled to read them is after seeing film adaptations, namely Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen and Daniel Clowes' Ghost World, this is not a prejudice against comics per se, I just find I have less time to indulge in recreational reading than I did before the pressures of work and parenthood, for shame!.. ..

Sondheim The Birthday Concert Blu-Ray Review

So, I turned 40 in 2011! I wasn't alone in this, among the luminaries joining me were Ewan McGregor, Mark Wahlberg, Winona Ryder, Mariah Carey and Sacha Baron Cohen, not that it gave many any great comfort in the face of reaching middle age! Still, as the lavish 80th birthday bash for Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim revealed he commenced a decade of his best work when he turned 40, starting with the groundbreaking concept musical Company in 1970 which surprised audiences looking for escapism by holding a mirror up to them in a series of vignettes about Bobby, a single New Yorker unable to commit to a steady relationship... ..

Alfred Hitchcock

In a single decade between 1954 and 1964 Alfred Hitchcock would Produce and Direct a dozen perfect movies, most notably Rear Window, Vertigo, North By Northwest, Psycho, The Birds and Marnie. Although only accounting for a third of his career, this would be his "Golden Period" and with each decade that passes these films seem to get better and better... ..

Woody Allen

Woody Allen has been writing and directing a new film project each a year for the last half a century, he has also acted in many of them, although in recent years he usually takes a smaller role, providing the comic relief or simply doesn't appear at all. Even from behind the camera you know it's a Woody Allen movie from the opening black and white titles, traditional jazz soundtrack and first lines of dialogue brimming with neurosis and one-liners filled with existential angst about balancing love and life in urban cities, predominately New York... ..

Dashuria Bardh E Zi Serial of Albania Watch Online

Dashuria Bardh e Zi is an Albanian Television Serial on daily basis. Videos are uploaded daily on Dailymotiona and Ear Stinger. Watch Tis serial online and download for free... ..

The Social Network Bluray Review

As a devotee of the landmark American serial drama The West Wing which ran for 7 years and focused on the day to day activities of the Oval Office and the loyal support staff who serve at the pleasure of fictional President Josiah Bartlet played effortlessly by the ever charismatic Martin Sheen, when I learnt that the show's creator and chief writer Aaron Sorkin had adapted Ben Mezrich's book The Accidental Billionaires which charted the founding of the now ubiquitous social website Facebook, despite my scepticism of the cinematic scope of the subject matter I knew that the quality of..... ..

TWIN PEAKS: Fire Walk With Me Bluray Review

The original television airing of Twin Peaks in 1990 coincided with my recent interest in the films of David Lynch after renting a copy of Blue Velvet on video and the break between the first and second seasons also saw the release of Wild At Heart at the cinema which launched a sudden and unexpected wave of Lynch mania that swept across both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Around the same time I visited America for the first time, landing in Los Angeles in January 1991 I couldn't wait to pick up a copy of the L.A. Reader so I could see Lynch's notorious cartoon strip The Angriest Dog in the World with my own eyes!.. ..

Grave Misconduct 21st Anniversary Edition Review

In 1990 I was the resident videographer at Bowes Lyon House, a youth centre and arts venue in my home town of Stevenage that would transform once a week into Thee Klub Wiv No Name attracting artists such as The Ragga Twins, The Bleach Boys and The Cranberries, I was tasked with capturing the live performances on tape. At the time I was an active member of The Bancroft Players a renowned drama society based at the Queen Mother Theatre in the neighbouring market town of Hitchin. Mike Lukey, my best friend from my early school days, was the keyboardist and songwriter for local band Budadada, now known as the New Town Centres... ..

Poirot Murder On The Orient Express Bluray Review

David Suchet has been playing Hercule Poirot on television for 20 years, almost every story has been filmed and finally one of the most anticipated has marked Poirot's debut on the hidef format; Murder On The Orient Express is considered by many to be the definitive Hercule Poirot story, and perhaps the best-known Agatha Christie work of all time. The story was famously filmed, during Christie's lifetime, in 1974 by legendary director Sidney Lumet, starring Albert Finney as the diminutive Belgian Detective and a host of Hollywood guest stars including, Sean Connery, Lauren Bacall, Anthony Perkins and..... ..

Kick-Ass Bluray Review

Having heard the controversy surrounding Kick-Ass due to its portrayal of graphic violence involving a minor I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I sat down to watch it for the first time. I'd actually delayed watching it over Christmas with the family as my father-in-law is particularly squeamish when it comes to the spilling of blood and guts. Not surprisingly the outcry by the film's few detractors is pretty unfounded when you consider the highly stylised violence in the broader context of the film, which clearly has a moral compass intent on telling the bizarre tale of Dave, a bullied teenage geek and would-be "Good Samaritan" who takes on the roll of a Costumed Vigilante to protect the innocent and exact revenge for those whose lives have been destroyed by an evil drug lord... ..

The Night of the Hunter Blu-Ray Review

The Night of the Hunter was the directorial debut of legendary British actor Charles Laughton although due to the largely negative response from both the cinema going public and the critics during its original release in 1955 it was to be his only film behind the camera. Clearly, the movie was years ahead of its time and is now considered one of the standout classics of film noir and amongst the mostly strikingly photographed films ever made... ..

Svengali Bluray Review

I first met Jonathan Owen a couple of years ago when I was working on Cass Pennant's documentary debut Casuals, he was one of the many interviewees who helped to tell the history of the Mod and Casual fashion scene. As many have testified Jonny is genuinely one of the nicest fellows you're likely to come across, especially in the entertainment industry, and his winning charm is at the heart of the success of the Svengali project that he has been working on since the first viral debuted on YouTube back in 2009... ..

Tetro Bluray Review

I was given Tetro on Blu-ray as a Christmas present but I had delayed watching it as with Francis Ford Coppola's previous release Youth Without Youth I was actually expecting to be very much disappointed by it, luckily this was not to be the case and its clearly his best entirely original screenplay since The Conversation and his most personal film since Apocalypse Now, I engaged with it so much that I wished it had another 30 minutes running time. The premise for Tetro is actually very slight Bennie a waiter on a cruise liner, decides to..... ..

The Mission Bluray Review

The Mission was the last screenplay by Robert Bolt, the writer responsible for such epic, historical movies as A Man for All Seasons and Lawrence of Arabia. Director Roland Joff? has made a film equally ambitious in its scale, featuring breathtaking cinematography by Chris Menges, deeply moving performances from stars Jeremy Irons and Robert De Niro, and a soulful award winning score from Ennio Morricone... ..

Network Bluray Review

At the 2011 Academy Awards Aaron Sorkin said in his acceptance speech, "It's impossible to describe what it feels like to be handed the same award that was given to Paddy Chayefsky 35 years ago for another movie with 'network' in the title." It was his first Oscar win for adapting The Social Network and he was referring to the unexpectedly prescient satire Network directed by Sidney Lumet in 1976... ..

Michael Clayton Bluray Review

Fresh from the success of furnishing the scripts for the extremely lucrative Bourne franchise, Tony Gilroy was given the rare opportunity to make his directorial debut with his own original screenplay Michael Clayton, an intricate, character-driven suspense story which finally confirms George Clooney to be one of the most distinguished screen actors of his generation. Clooney plays the title role, a 'fixer' with a prestigious New York City law firm; he is an opaque figure who, as a former criminal prosecutor, is uniquely gifted at his job which usually involves finding legal loopholes exonerating high paying clientele..... ..